Japan’s Pedophilic Problem ft. “Manami Chopa”
I’ve been putting writing this off for a while. Part of me is like “just let it go and move on”, but another part of me is still grossed out by seeing this on a daily basis while living in Japan. If you have been following my blog for a while, you might remember this post, where I discussed how little girls as young as 5 are “sold” by their parents into the junior gravure industry. In short, parents basically sexually exploit their children for money. This is a huge problem on its own but an ever bigger problem is that there are no laws to protect these kids. A lot of these reach puberty and this behavior becomes part of their personality. No longer are they managed by their parents, but instead, they learn to sell their bodies to the industry on their own. Did I mention that most of the customers are old men? They’ll pay hundreds of dollars just for a set of sexy pictures or a live singing/dance show. Just take a look at the following X (twitter) picture. The owner, which is the guy with the potato on his face, has gray hair strands. GRAY HAIR STRANDS! The rest of his X profile is full of pictures of underage girls. He even has some of himself with a little girl that seems to be around 6 years old. Gross.
Anyways, today’s topic is the 13 year old (I think she’s 14 now?) internet icon “Manami Chopa”. I collected most of these about a year ago while I was investigating the pedophilia that goes on in social media, mostly within Japanese accounts and circles. Manami Chopa is a “performer”. She basically does live shows and maintains a presence in social media. If you look at her actual performance, there is no super talent or anything. Her singing is not just bad, and I hate to go against a kid like this, but she has one of the most annoying voices I have ever heard. Her dancing is average, and she struggles to dance and sing at the same time. Instead, her selling point is both using provocative clothes and hyper-sexual dance moves. Let’s take a look at some of the pictures.
I really need to stress this again, because it's so important: we're talking about a 13-year-old girl here, and her parents are apparently okay with this. I've been digging around, trying to figure out where her live shows take place, but it's like they're a well-kept secret. It's a mystery how some of these guys manage to find out about these shows. My best guess? It's probably an invite-only deal. She's got clips of her live performances up on social media, and it's always the same sketchy setting: a room that looks pretty dodgy, equipped with some sort of stage or platform setup. And let me tell you, if you were shocked by the pictures, the videos are a whole different ball game. They're a more disturbing glimpse into what's going on. It's baffling and deeply concerning that this is happening, and even more so that it's being allowed. There would be a manhunt for the parent’s of this child if this were to happen in the United States.
But wait, that’s not the worst one.
Honestly, I'm a bit reluctant to dive too deep into this topic. The issue at hand is transparently problematic, particularly for a nation as developed as Japan. It seems that, in numerous social aspects, Japan is somewhat trailing behind. For example, only recently did they amend the legal marriage age for females, raising it from 16 to 18 years. Then there's the topic of the age of consent for sexual activities, which is alarmingly low, roughly around 13 or 15 years – though I’m not entirely certain, so please don't quote me on this.
The intention behind this post is to kindle awareness both within international communities and possibly within the Japanese government itself (though, realistically, they are probably well aware of these issues). There are significant matters at play here, often hidden from the broader public eye, that deserve our attention and discussion. It's crucial for countries, especially those considered advanced and developed like Japan, to reflect on and address these social discrepancies. Shining a light on these under-the-radar issues might foster a better understanding and inspire positive change.
